If you are a Stephen King fan, you simply must rush out and buy The Complete Stephen King Universe right now. It is a big, thick encyclopedia of King’s work that covers everything from his short stories to his teleplays, weaving intriguing connections between plotlines and characters even I didn’t know existed.

This ultimate reference guide to all things Kingly takes a close look at the universe King has created through his vast amount of works, both on the page and on the screen. The authors take each of King’s pieces and show the characters, the plotline, and the connections that particular piece has to other of King’s works. The end result is mind-boggling proof that King is one of the best, most creative writers of our time – a writer with the distinct ability to cast spells with words and construct worlds that are so real, you almost forget they are all made up.

The book includes a bibliography and runs through King’s works by theme as well as in chronological order, and the authors particularly focus on the critical importance of King’s “Dark Tower” series as the sort of center of the entire King Universe. I was surprised and thrilled at all the connections the authors made between stories and characters, and they reveal many an interesting fact or theory that even those of us who think we know King’s work well may be surprised by, as well. In fact, I found myself wanting to go back and reread many of King’s works to see the threads I missed over the first time.

If you love King, or know someone who does, what a great gift this would make. Be prepared, though, to spend a little money on all those King books you have yet to read, now that you are about to find out how they play a key role in a bigger, grander scheme of things. A scheme so deep and creative and imaginative it can only come from the mind of royalty – like a King.